Proverbs 22:15

Foolishness is bound in the heart of a child; but the rod of correction shall drive it far from him.

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Word by word — the Hebrew

Word	Hebrew	Strong’s	Meaning
Foolishness	אִ֭וֶּלֶת 'I.ve.let	H200	silliness · noun, common feminine singular absolute
bound	קְשׁוּרָ֣ה ke.shu.Rah	H7194	to tie · verb, qal passive participle, feminine singular absolute
heart	בְלֶב ve.lev-	H3820	the heart · preposition + noun, common masculine singular construct
child	נָ֑עַר Na.'ar	H5288	(concretely) a boy (as active) · noun, common masculine singular absolute
rod	שֵׁ֥בֶט She.vet	H7626	a scion · noun, common masculine singular construct
correction	מ֝וּסָ֗ר mu.Sar	H4148	properly · noun, common masculine singular absolute
far	יַרְחִיקֶ֥נָּה yar.chi.Ke.nah	H7368	to widen (in any direction) · verb, hiphil imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular + pronominal suffix, 3rd person feminine singular

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).

Cross-references

Proverbs 13:24 He that spareth his rod hateth his son: but he that loveth him chasteneth him betimes.
Proverbs 29:15 The rod and reproof give wisdom: but a child left to himself bringeth his mother to shame.
Proverbs 19:18 Chasten thy son while there is hope, and let not thy soul spare for his crying.
Proverbs 23:13-14 Withhold not correction from the child: for if thou beatest him with the rod, he shall not die.
Proverbs 29:17 Correct thy son, and he shall give thee rest; yea, he shall give delight unto thy soul.
Hebrews 12:10-11 For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness.
Psalms 51:5 Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.
Ephesians 2:3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; an…

Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Proverbs 22:15

We have here two very sad considerations: - 1. That corruption is woven into our nature. Sin is foolishness; it is contrary both to our right reason and to our true interest. It is in the heart; there is an inward inclination to sin, to speak and act foolishly. It is in the heart of children; they bring it into the world with them; it is what they were shapen and conceived in. It is not only found there, but it is bound there; it is annexed to the heart (so some); vicious dispositions cleave closely to the soul, are bound to it as the cion to the stock into which it is grafted, which quite alters the property. There is a knot tied between the soul and sin, a true lover's knot; they two becam…

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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Proverbs 22:15

is bound--or firmly fixed. Chastisement deters from crime and so leads to reformation of principle.

John Gill on Proverbs 22:15

Foolishness is bound in the heart of a child,.... That is, sin, the greatest of all folly; this is naturally in the heart of man; it is in the heart of a child, it is in him from his infancy; it is bound in his heart, it is rooted and riveted in him, being conceived in sin, and shapen in iniquity; it is what cleaves close to him, and he has a strong affection for and desire after: the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth, Genesis 8:21; so that he is not easily brought off of sin, or becomes wise; but the rod of correction shall drive it far from him; the rod used by parents, for the correction of sin and folly, is a means of making children wise, and of restraining the folly th…

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Keil & Delitzsch on Proverbs 22:15

15 Folly is bound to the heart of a child; The rod of correction driveth it forth. Folly, i.e., pleasure in stupid tricks, silly sport, and foolish behaviour, is the portion of children as such; their heart is as yet childish, and folly is bound up in it. Education first driveth forth this childish, foolish nature (for, as Menander says: Ὁ μὴ δαρεὶς ἄνθρωπος οὐ παιδεύεται), and if effects this when it is unindulgently severe: the שׁבט מוּסר (vid., Pro 23:13) removeth אוּלת from the heart, for it imparts intelligence and makes wise (Pro 29:15). The lxx is right in rendering 16a: ἄνοια ἐξῆπται (from ἐξάπτειν) καρδίας νέου; but the Syr. has "here mangled the lxx, and in haste has…

The Church Fathers

"Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child," etc. We know many children endowed with wisdom; for Jeremiah undertook the ministry of prophecy as a child. And Daniel writes, "Because God gave to the children abstaining knowledge and discipline in every word and wisdom" (Dan. II). Wherefore, it remains to understand that by children in this place he means not by age, but by sense, the little ones; such as the Apostle forbade the Corinthians to be, to whom he said: "Do not be children in understanding; but in malice be children" (I Cor. XIV). For such children, that is, souls dedicated to foolishness, or to licentiousness, or to sloth, it is necessary that they be disciplined by youthful correction and guided by the vigor of the wise to the right path of life.
— Bede, Commentary on Proverbs

The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).

Dictionary and topics

Bastinado — Beating, a mode of punishment common in the East. It is referred to by “the rod of correction” (Prov. 22:15), “scourging” (Lev. 19:20), “chastising” (Deut. 22:18). The number of blows could not…
Sin — Is “any want of conformity unto or transgression of the law of God” (1 John 3:4; Rom. 4:15), in the inward state and habit of the soul, as well as in the outward conduct of the life, whether by…
Children · Should be: Judiciously trained — Should be: Judiciously trained
Heart, Character Of The Unrenewed · Foolish — Foolish

Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).

Proverbs 22:15

Word by word — the Hebrew

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Proverbs 22:15

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Proverbs 22:15

John Gill on Proverbs 22:15

Keil & Delitzsch on Proverbs 22:15

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

Proverbs 22:15

Word by word — the Hebrew

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Proverbs 22:15

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Proverbs 22:15

John Gill on Proverbs 22:15

Keil & Delitzsch on Proverbs 22:15

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

Tyndale Open Study Notes on Proverbs 22:15

Rashi on Proverbs 22:14